elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Feb 15, 2013 13:07:44 GMT -5
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Feb 10, 2013 18:36:28 GMT -5
Hey y'all, My club's show (Ventura) is happening March 2nd and 3rd at the fairgrounds and I've been grinding away trying to fill the Kid's booth with polished material for the spinning wheel. Yesterday I dropped off the first 45 prizes to the guy collecting the material: Today I worked on a few more for both the kid's booth and my display. My larger machine went down so I had to downgrade to my Pixie which limited me to smaller material. Kid's booth material: I believe this is from Africa. I have a few of these red bordered - quartz filled nodules. All are severely fractured and broken in odd shapes - hence the curvy polish. Strawberry Onyx from the Bristol Mountains near Ludlow CA Fire Agate specimen: Couple small Lagunas going as a pair: Transition between Keep and Give: Two Blue Forest Limbs from Wyoming: I think I'm keeping the top specimen. Paul Bunyan Plume Agate: A few small Lagunas from my Beefjello purchase. I'm thinking I might put a bunch of my Mexican material in my case, from smallest in the front to the largest in the back. Wondering what it might look like. A Laker: I'm really loving these Mozambique agates: Sorry for the ramble. Thanks for looking, Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Feb 10, 2013 18:18:38 GMT -5
Brian,
I'm very happy you enjoyed the package. Looking forward to you posting the cut ups so I can see these guys' innards.
Take care and happy cutting!
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Feb 9, 2013 15:19:00 GMT -5
James, Here's a thread I'm using to put together the Agate Index for northern states. You'll see Mel's shots of Prairie plus Roger's shots of the truly amazing agates he finds in the Black Hills, including a few pictures of Fairburns. forum.rocktumblinghobby.com/index.cgi?board=rocksidlib&action=display&thread=35957Don also has a continuing thread where he posts his Fairburn collection here: forum.rocktumblinghobby.com/index.cgi?board=specphoto&action=display&thread=53139Now (and people correct me if I'm wrong)... Both are found in relatively the same place - but Fairburns apparently originated in the Black Hills and have tumbled naturally through erosion as they were washed away from their sources. They tend to have tighter banding and often will still be attached to some form of their matrix. Many are found in a section of a specific set of gravel and eroded material coming from the black hills called the Chadron Formation. Prairie agates seem to be larger specimens, mostly without matrix, that have banding but not in the same tight formations. I am not sure where Prairie Agates are said to have originated. They all seem to be weathered pretty well. There is also Black Hills agate that many people consider to be the source of Fairburns, but the agates are found where they were formed rather than having been washed away from the black hills. Versions of Black Hills agate can be found near Teepee Canyon, S&G Canyon, and several other places. I hope this is some help (and not too far from the truth...) I used Roger Clark's book _Fairburn Agate: Gem of South Dakota_ to aid my memory. Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Feb 8, 2013 21:34:04 GMT -5
bump to access images
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Feb 6, 2013 22:59:12 GMT -5
Hey Mel,
Everything looks great!
I'm glad you found some use for the material I sent over. I have been putting together another box for you for sometime next month. I'm expecting to receive another influx of that 'endcut' material at our show in March. I'll also drop in more of those A/Tears if you need them.
Huge thanks again for the box you sent in return - I'm am utterly fascinated and absorbed by the shrinkwood - thanks for feeding my interest. I was set to do some polishing on a couple pieces you sent for my display case yesterday but one of my pumps on my Titan went down with a disconcerting screech. I need to get to Diamond Pacific for a look-see, fix and/or replacement. I hate admitting I'm not mechanically apt enough to take it apart myself.
Hope your spring comes soon.
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Feb 3, 2013 21:10:40 GMT -5
bump to add images to index
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Feb 3, 2013 21:09:00 GMT -5
Bump to pull images for index
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Feb 3, 2013 21:08:31 GMT -5
Bump to pull images for Index
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 29, 2013 22:50:01 GMT -5
I've had the chance to do a few talks to preschoolers and it is fascinating and joyous watching their minds focus on science and ask questions because they want to learn rather than being forced to.
Glad u had a chance to spend some time in their world.
It's a great place.
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 21, 2013 23:30:35 GMT -5
Quick bump so I can transcribe images to my database.
I am working on the next agate'jasper index. I bumped this to make it easier to find for now as I copy material from it.
thanks all who have provided images.
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 20, 2013 15:27:47 GMT -5
Very nice work!
Love how you accented the downward point of the stone.
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 20, 2013 15:23:44 GMT -5
Man, Brian (beef), let me know when you get another package of these little goodies! And the rest - nothing outrageous but it's been fun to hang out over the polishing unit during this 3 day break: Hauser Egg done as a gift for my uncle: Some blue moss that you can find at the Hauser Beds: And two from the Cady Mountains: Red Moss from the Southern access (small piece for kid's booth) Plume from the Northern access (for my plume/seam sample collection from that area) Thanks for taking a quick peek, Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 20, 2013 13:28:37 GMT -5
My I see Helen's point about it being S20, and I ran with that for a while, but now I'm thinking against it. Now - not claiming to be an expert - but I have compared handwriting on a great many notes to writing samples of students looking to see if I could find matches. What I see in this note - specifically s20 vs SD. 1) The 'D' in SD is done in one stroke. If it was '20', most likely it would have been two separate - as is every other number in this limited sample. Yes - the note is in cursive so no proof - just observation. 2) The O in october is written with a larger curl, and if the other writing is a 20, I would think the 0 would mimic it - but I might be wrong. I also like Mel's thought regarding these possibly being garnets. Just thoughts - no proof of anything. Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 17, 2013 22:51:48 GMT -5
Man! I can't wait to see the cabs that come out of that slab!!!
Oh...that's the sky. Problem with rockhounding is that your attention much of the time is faced the other direction...
Lovely and marvelous. Thanks for sharing,
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 17, 2013 22:49:49 GMT -5
I'm just glad you follow that moral code, even when hard it is to do.
It's when we start justifying breaking the rules a little bit that we could wind up breaking the rules a lot...and that is when people start ruining the hobby.
Enjoy the steaks and maybe you'll strike up a friendship with the boss and he can tell you who did his yard - and then you can raid that landscaper's pile!
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 15, 2013 3:50:01 GMT -5
I really like that color and you did an excellent job.
As for the form... Kinda looks like the shape of that strange light I saw hovering over a cornfield in Nebraska back in the 70's....
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 15, 2013 3:45:44 GMT -5
Alisha, I'm glad you like them. They're just do-hickey dust collectors, but I hope fun. What I forgot to put in was a couple pieces of rhodochrosite from my secret stash. Plum forgot. You would have had fun with the stuff.
General note: You know - I don't know what's better - going first and watching everyone pick out items you might have placed, or going later and having that sweet anticipation of watching the box travel through all those points on its way around the county and wondering what might go into the thing next...
(To think - that box is going to be better traveled than I am - is it wrong to be jealous of a piece of glued together cardboard?)
Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 13, 2013 20:05:36 GMT -5
I've been able to get some time in the garage lately and have been polishing up some new specimens. Many are going to the kid's booth at our show in March and the California show in May/June. What pushed me most the last two days are the gaggle of baby lagunas i purchased from Beef. They are not the largest specimens - but that's great. I can do a bunch in a shortened period, and I love seeing what each looks like. The babies here came to me either broken or cracked and i was able to see a pattern. It meant I didn't need to cut, and that saves time. So - here's the batch of lil guys! One of my favorite agates in terms of color and design! (I know - teeny tiny - but I keep on hearing rumors that size doesn't matter.....) And another tiny guy - but the complexity of his banding is amazing - especially considering his size. And one I polished along two fronts: And the 'friends': North Cady Mountain Seam- CA: Two Mozambique 'Rose' agates: Utah Coral: Hauser Bed Nodule - Interesting 'banding': Black Hills Agate - from Roger a couple years ago. One of my few instances of patience....but if I lived where he lived - I'd be out in the field an awful lot! Thanks for looking! Lowell
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elementary
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since February 2006
Posts: 1,077
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Post by elementary on Jan 12, 2013 0:48:28 GMT -5
I haven't done much cabbing as the whole process of dopping and waiting doesn't sit well with my impatience. But I do free form an awful lot and in doing that I prefer the shaping part of the process the most followed by the polishing. The center wheels are tedious as you gotta check for those dang scratches.
But the shaping...working free form I love following the contours of the stone as you try to find the balance between a great pattern and a pleasing curvature. I call it "chasing agate" due to the need to turn the stone in your attempt to free its inner beauty. The polishing is nice in that you can finally put down a stone and say "done!"
Lowell
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